1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a self cooling motor system comprising an internally cooled motor assembly. Specifically, the internally cooled motor assembly comprises a winding assembly including one or more windings having a fluid passage extending lengthwise from an inlet aperture to an outlet aperture and being structured to permit a fluid heat transfer media to flow therethrough. Each winding further comprises a helix configuration structured such that centrifugal forces generated by the rotation of the motor shaft are sufficient to force the flow of fluid heat transfer media through the windings, i.e., thereby “self pumping” the heat transfer media therethrough.
2. Description of the Related Art
The benefits derived from the addition of a heated vapor, for example, steam, to a conventional air-fuel mixture prior to injection into a cylinder of a conventional internal combustion engine have been known for some time. One important advantage is the increase in the percentage of completion of combustion, which necessarily results in an increase in the horsepower generated and an improvement in fuel efficiency. The improved operational efficiency further results in an improvement in the air emissions (i.e. a reduction in emissions). Given the numerous advantages available from the addition of a vapor, such as steam, to a conventional air-fuel mixture, numerous devices have been developed attempting to harness and control this process. However, to date, few of these devices have found widespread acceptance and utilization, mainly due to the complexity of handling and, more importantly, controlling the quality and/or the quantity or rate of flow of the steam.
In particular, a common pitfall of many of these devices is that the components utilized for steam generation and delivery are often related to certain operating characteristics of the engine, such as combustion, as well as intake manifold vacuum pressure, engine speed, and/or quality and quantity of high temperature radiation from operation of the engine available for steam generation. In these devices, the quality and/or quantity of steam generated is dependent on one or more operating characteristics of the engine itself, once again, such as combustion, thereby requiring almost continuous adjustment of the operation of the engine to maintain a constant rate of flow of the steam. It is primarily this factor which is believed to be the reason why these devices have not achieved widespread acceptance and utilization.
Additionally, external factors, such as adverse weather conditions, may have a particularly severe and negative impact upon the viability of adding steam to a conventional air-fuel mixture. For example, many areas of the United States experience outdoor temperatures well below the freezing point of water for at least some portion of the year. Under these conditions, any residual water vapor remaining in a device, or its appurtenances, intended for outdoor use, such as an automobile engine, is at risk of freezing when the engine is not operating, which could easily result in temporary blockage of flow through the steam injection device. In more severe cases, freezing water vapor could result in the rupturing of lines, freezing of throttle plates, fittings, and/or other components of the steam injection device as the freezing water vapor expands on the inside of these components. Thus, in spite of the numerous advantages which may be obtained from the addition of steam to a conventional air-fuel mixture, the widespread acceptance and utilization of devices structured to achieve this goal has not become a reality.
In addition to the injection of steam into a conventional air-fuel mixture for conventional internal combustion engines, other engines which are structured to operate solely on steam are well known, for example, large scale conventional steam turbines and steam locomotive engines. These large scale systems are generally structured to operate on an almost continuous basis, and as such, they often derive their input energy from a continuous feed of live steam having an elevated temperature and pressure. Historically, however, attempts to scale down and regulate these large scale, continuous, live steam systems in relatively small scale, intermittently operated systems, for example, a four cycle engine, have been plagued with significant efficiency losses. It is believed that among the efficiency problems associated with the small scale systems is the energy loss of the live steam as it is acted upon by the dynamics of the small scale system. While it is understood that dynamic losses are present in large scale systems as well, the overall impact of the energy loss of the live steam is not as significant in terms of system efficiency, due in part to the large volume of steam utilized in such systems, as it is in relatively small scale systems.
A further difficulty encountered with attempts to scale down continuous, live steam systems is the accurate control of the quantity or rate of flow of live steam to a particular component of the system. This is a problem common to handling any compressible material, as there is a delicate balance and constant trade off between pressure, volume, and temperature. As such, and as noted above, given that steam energy losses are directly related to the system configuration, materials of construction, insulation factors, etc., these losses are exaggerated in small scale systems, particularly due to increased frictional and thermal losses through smaller scale pipes and fittings. Thus, to accurately control the quantity or rate of flow of steam to be delivered to a particular component of a system, the balance and interaction between the various components of the system and their impact upon a given quantity of steam at a given temperature and pressure must be completely understood and configured to ensure accurate delivery of the desired quantity and quality of steam at any point in the system. As it should be appreciated, given the extreme change in temperatures in the components of an intermittently operated small scale engine, for example, a four cycle automobile engine, accurate control of the quality and/or quantity of steam to a particular component of such an engine requires almost continuous and precise adjustment of the quality and/or quantity of the steam injection device.
As such, it would be beneficial for an assembly to permit direct injection of an accurately controlled amount of an operative fluid at a predetermined temperature and pressure to a combustion chamber of a small scale engine or other device, such as, for example, a stirling engine or a 4-cycle steam engine. Further, it would be advantageous for such an assembly to be capable of providing the accurately controlled amount of operative fluid at any one of a number of cyclic rates, such as the small scale engine or other device may demand due to different loads. Additionally, it would be helpful for such an assembly to be capable of providing any one of a number of accurately controlled amounts of the operative fluid at a given cyclic rate, such as the small scale engine or other device may demand due to different loads. Also, it would be beneficial to provide an assembly which is able to quickly and efficiently alternate between the numerous cyclic rates or accurately controlled amounts per operating cycle as may be required by the small scale engine or other devices, such as, for example, a stirling engine or a 4-cycle steam engine, without adversely affecting the operational efficiency of the engine or other device.
With regard to electric motors, a direct correlation exists between operating efficiency and temperature. In general, higher temperatures reduce the operating efficiency of an electric motor due to an increase in the resistance of the conductive windings of such motors at elevated temperatures. In order to control the operating temperature of electric motors, and in particular, the operating temperature of the conductive windings, auxiliary temperature control systems are often implemented, which are independent of the operation of the motor, such as a fan, a forced flow radiator, or even a temperature controlled environment in which a motor operates, all of which require additional external energy resources and expenses related to the operation of an electric motors, thereby resulting in a decrease in the overall operating efficiency of the same. Alternatively, or in combination with such auxiliary temperature control systems, high resistance conductive windings have been employed in electric motors in order to prevent runaway operating temperatures, however, the trade-off in temperature control comes in the form of a reduction in the inductive magnetic forces generated at the poles of the electric motor, thereby resulting in a reduction in the operating efficiency of the motor, which is often significant.
As such, it would be beneficial to provide an electric motor that is not reliant upon any auxiliary temperature control system to maintain its operation within a desired operating temperature range, thereby eliminating the need for additional external energy resources and the related operating expenses associated therewith. More in particular, it would be advantageous for an electric motor assembly to operate in conjunction with a temperature control assembly to maintain the operating temperature of an electric motor within a desired operating range, wherein the temperature control assembly is driven by the electric motor itself, and is not reliant upon any additional external energy resources to operate. It would be a further benefit for such a temperature control assembly to allow an electric motor comprising low resistance conductive windings to operate within a desired operating temperature range, thereby maximizing the inductive magnetic forces generated at the poles of the electric motor. A further advantage may be realized by creating a substantially closed system wherein an electric motor is operated within a predetermined operating temperature range selected for maximum efficiency, with little to no expenditure of any additional external energy resources.